A change is gonna come: a critical study of the impact of a community organizing group on power relations and public life (original) (raw)

provided much needed humor and direction throughout the process, as well. This study was made possible by the participation of public officials and business leaders in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, North Carolina. Moreover, I appreciate the members of CHANGE for sharing their experiences, insights, and questions honestly and without hesitation. Finally, I am grateful to IAF Southeast Director, Gerald Taylor; former CHANGE Lead Organizers, Mr. Chris Baumann and Mrs. Deltra Bonner; current Lead Organizer, Reverend Ryan Eller; and CHANGE leaders, Dr. Steve Boyd and Reverend Kelly Carpenter, for agitating me to think more critically and creatively about community organizing and my work in the world. v PREFACE Stories are powerful because they are readings of daily life and human interactions. Perhaps conduits to the soul or simply one's way of making meaning in a chaotic world, stories give us insight into how human beings come to know and be known. This study is a story of sorts-a chronicle of a particular time, a particular place, and a particular group of people who share a mission of bettering their community. The differences arise around what community actually means and what strategies are used to achieve their objectives. This is a story about a town trying to reinvent itself in the face of globalization and economic uncertainty. This is a story of the ghosts that persist in southern communities, and it's a story about an unexpected journey that has challenged me to question the sources of my deepest values and how I interpret them into daily life. At its core, this study is a meditation, a wrestling match, a lament, and a vision about a single question, "Am I my Other's keeper?" and the implications of answering this question. This study grows out of my experiences helping to build a community organizing group, Communities Helping All Neighbors Gain Empowerment, or CHANGE, through my roles as a founding member, volunteer leader, and professional organizer. It has also developed in response to my academic voyage and my inexhaustible struggle with a faith journey. There has been a confluence between these three paths that has significantly shaped my perspectives of fellow human beings and my internal life. These corridors have afforded meaning and a language for the work that I feel called to do in the world. County versus issue-based actions?; 2) How do elected and appointed public officials and corporate leaders define and view the work of CHANGE?; and 3) What are the indicators which suggest that, as a result of the organization's efforts, changes in governance 2 , participation in public life, individual agency, and the development of meaningful relationships across diverse groups have occurred? For the purposes of this study, my use of the term political and cultural transformation is intended to broadly capture evidence of the dismantling of the master's house and the master's tools; that is to say, transformation means addressing power imbalances and inequities through a demonstration of transparent and shared decision-making, access to resources, public policies that are responsive to all segments of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, and a general sense that everyone is considered a valuable, necessary member of the community. This study grows out of my experiences as a founding member, volunteer leader, and professional organizer with CHANGE. The specific concentration on evaluating changes in governance and power relations developed out of discussions with Mr. Gerald Taylor (Southeast Director of the Industrial Areas Foundation), CHANGE leaders, and North Carolina United Power (NCUP) 3 staff regarding the ways in which our respective 2 The term, governance, has emerged from a contemporary global discourse about democracy and civic agency and suggests a broader meaning than government (Boyte, 2005). Marschall (1999) defines governance as the methods used by individuals and institutions to "manage their common affairs, control resources, and exercise power to achieve public purposes" (p. 168). 3 North Carolina United Power is comprised of the Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) affiliates in North Carolina: Charlotte HELP, Durham CAN, Winston-Salem CHANGE, Lexington Citizens for CHANGE, and the North Carolina Latino Coalition. Organizers and leaders from these groups meet together regularly in order to share information about the work happening in their local communities and to create shared campaigns at the statewide level.